Shirley Smart

A very first performance at the Crypt for this acclaimed duo. Shirley Smart is recognised as one of the UK?s most versatile and creative cellists ? being equally at home and well versed in jazz and Middle Eastern music, as well as classical music. Originally trained under Raphael Wallfisch at the Guildhall School of Music, and Janos Starker in Paris, she subsequently moved to Jerusalem. She remained for 10 years. studying and performing a wide variety of musical traditions from the region, and working with artists including Avishai Cohen, Omer Avital and Yasmin Levy. Since returning to the UK, she has quickly become established as a unique performer, and is in demand with artists such as Mulatu Astatke, Neil Cowley, Robert Mitchell, Nikki Yeoh and Maya Youssef. She also leads her own projects and released her first trio album Long Story Short? in 2018 to critical acclaim. She has recently become - Academic Professor Of Musicianship, Aural and Improvisation at the Royal College of Music. Robert Mitchell is one of the most significant voices in British jazz ? a pianist, keyboardist, composer, improviser, writer, poet and so much more. As Gilles Peterson put it in reaction to one of Mitchell?s most recent albums with his trio Epiphany 3 ? ?a very important, influential musician? and a relentless seeker and thinker, encompassing many art forms, musical genres and constantly pushing the envelope. Robert Mitchell is proud to have been a Steinway artist for over a decade. He was MD on the successful BBC4 television programme ?Jazz 625 Live: For One Night Only? which won the British Broadcasting Award. He has played with Billy Harper, Greg Osby, Courtney Pine CBE, Alicia Olatuja, Orphy Robinson, Steve Coleman, Phil Ranelin, Omar Puente, Ernesto Simpson, Daymé Arocena, Jason Rebello, Shirley Smart, Basement Jaxx, Dub Colossus, Daniel Casimir, Joshua Redman, Jacqui Dankworth MBE, and many others. Robert Mitchell?s works have been performed by the Grammy-winning Bournemouth Symphony Chorus and the London Sinfonietta, amongst others. He is a sought-for composer and known as an innovator with a distinct, unique voice. He has released 13 albums and leads the groups TRUE THINK, Epiphany 3 and performs solo piano. The last year has seen the widely contrasting debut releases from TRUE THINK and the improv trio The Flame. A second poetry volume is on the way later this year. In 2022 - Robert featured artist in a 6 part series called Jazz Meets Classical broadcast jointly on Jazz FM/Scala Radio. He is a Jazz Piano Professor at the Guildhall School Of Music & Drama, Principal Lecturer at Leeds College.